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REFLECTIONS 

ON 

COLONEL HUMPHREYS' 

LIFE OF 

GENERAL PUTNAM.* 



Voltaire opens the preface to his history of Charles Twelfth, king 
of Sweden, as follows : ' Incredulity, says Aristotle, is the source of 
all wisdom ;' and adds : ' This maxim is exceedingly proper for all 
who read history, and ancient history in particular. How many ab 
surd stories ! How many fables shocking to common sense ! What 
then "? Do not believe a word of them.'' 

How applicable the foregfiing caution may be to the reader of the 
essay 'before us, he must judge. At any rate it is a well known fact, 
that writers of biography, particularly of military men, are much 
addicted tg exaggerations in relating the exploits of their hero ; with 
a view, it would seem, not only of exalting his fame, but also of ren- 
dering their history the more entertaining. 

This work of Colonel Humphreys certainly contains relations of 
chivalrous deeds of valor, and hair-breadth escapes, seldom met with 
in modern history, and which are perhaps without a parallel. It is to be 
regretted, however, that many statements here made in regard to our 
revolutionaiy war have by late writers, conversant with the facts, 
been shown to be palpable mistakes. These errors, nevertheless, had 
remained uncontradicted for many years ; and from the imposing 
manner in which the narrative was presented to the public, by a com- 
panion in arms of the General, and being, it is believed, the first regu- 
lar work published in relation to the war, it must have had, it may 
readily be conceived, a poweirful influence on succeeding historians 
of that event, and which is visible in their productions. 

Colonel Humphreys was* a poet, and is reported to have been a 
flippant, gentlemanlike person, of good address, full of vanity, But not 
distinguished for sound judgment. And the subject of his memoir is 
well known to have been a rough, uneducated man, and extremely 

*'An Essay on the Life of the Hon. Major-General Israel Putnam. Addressed to the State 
Society of the Cincinnati of Connecticut, and first published by their order. By Colonel David 
Humphreys. With Notes and Additions.' Boston : 1818. First edition, 1788. 



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gaiTulous and' egotistical iit advanced age. Tlie former, by his own 
showing, derived his information mainly from the latter; the work 
therefore might with propriety be denominated an autobiography, 
and the Colonel the amanuensis of the General. He was indeed, at 
one period of the war, his aid, and in that capacity had a fair oppor- 
tunity to listen to the recital of the General's achievements. 

It is not proposed to enter into a general review of this work, but 
merely to select som'e of the most striking passages, and to apply such 
observations as the subjects seem to justify. The author, in his pre- 
fatory remarks, observes : 

'The numerous errors and fulsehooiis relative to the birth and acliievements of Major-General 
Putnam, which have at a former period been circulated with assiduity on both sides of the Atlantic, 
and the uncertainty which api)eared to prevail with respect to his real character, first produced the 
resolution of writing this essay on his life, and induced the editor to obtain materials from that hero 
himself. And he seizes with eagerness an opportunity of acknowledging his obligations to Doctor 
Albigence Waldo, who was so obliging as to commit to writing many {inccdotes, communicated to him 
by General Putnam in the course of the present year. A multitude of proofs might be produced to 
demonstrate that military facts cannot always be accurately known but by the commander-in-chief 
and his confidential otficers. 

' Should tliis essay have any influence in correcting mistakes, or rescuing from oblivion the actions 
of that distinguished veteran, it will be an ample cbmpensation for the trouble, and excite a consola- 
tory reflection through every vicissitude of life.' 

It is passing strange, that the achievements of a Major-General in 
our revolutionary war, if he performed any worthy of notice, should 
so soon after its close have sunk into oblivion, and that it required 
the hero himself to trumpet his own fame. The remarks of the biog- 
rapher might perhaps apply to a subaltern officer, who may have 
performed heroic actions not recorded in history, and which justice 
required should be brought into notice. Military operations intended, 
may be krwwn only to the commander-in-chief, but when put in exe- 
cution, beconve notorious. It is in vain, however, that we search for 
any notable action of the subject of this memoir, in the revolutionary 
war. He was nearly sixty years old at its commencement ; was evi- 
dently placed in a station which nature and his education had not 
qualified him to fill ; and was therefore kept in the reserve during 
nearly the whole period of his service, where no action was expected, 
and consequently no generalship required. The biographer proceeds : 

'Israel Putnam, who, through a regular gradation of promotion, became the senior Major'-General 
in the army of the United States, and next in rank to General Washington, was born at Salem, in 
the province, now State, of Massachusetts, January 7, 1718. • • • To compensate partially for the 
deficiency of education, though nothing can remove or counterbalance the inconveniences experi 
enced from it in public life, he derived from his parents the source of innumerable advantages in the 
stamina of a vigorous constitution. Nature, liberal in bestowing on him bodily strength, hardiness, 
and activity, was by no means parsimonious in mental endowments. 

' In the year 1739, he removed from Salem to Ponifret, an inland fertile town in Connecticut : having 
here purchased a considerable tract of land, he applied himself successfully to agriculture. The first 
years on a new farm are not, however, exempt from disasters and disappointments, which can only 
be remedied by stubborn and patient industry. Our farmer, sufficiently occupied in building a house 
and barn, felling woods, m diing fences, sowing grain, planting orchards, and taking care of his stock, 
had to encounter the calamities occasioned by drought in summer, blast in harvest, loss of cattle in 
winter, and the desobition of his sheep-fold by wolves. In one night he had seventy fine sheep and 
goats killed, beside many lambs and kids wounded. This havoc was committed by a she-wolf, which 
with her annual whelps had for several years infested the vicinity. The young were commonly de- 
stroyed by tlievigilanee of the hunters, but the old one, on being closely pursued, would generally fly 
to the western woods, and return the next winter with another litter of whelps.' 

This is an awful account of calamities, indeed ! The most won- 
derful part of it is, that a single she-wolf should in one night have 
killed seventy sheep and goats ; and that after having caught a tender 
lamb, she should suft'er it to escape with only a wound. She perhaps 



3 

adopted the maxim that it is as well to die for an old sheep as a lamb ; 
or possibly she preferred mutton to lamb : on this point we are left 
entirely to conjecture. Few goats are raised in New-England, sheep 
being much more profitable ; the bulk, therefore, of Mr. Putnam's 
loss upon this occasion must have consisted of the latter. Now the 
average number of sheep kept by old farmers in Connecticut, at the 
period alluded to, may 1 believe fairly be set down at between thiity 
and forty ; each family keeping no more than were necessary to fur- 
nish a sufficiency of wool for its own consumption. That Mr. Putnam, 
therefore, who had just commenced clearing new land for the pur- 
pose of cultivation, should have possessed such a number of sheep as 
it appeal's he did, is truly surprising ; for, from the manner the story 
is told, it would seem that the loss he sustained was a mere thinning 
of his flock. 

As the rencontre of Mr. Putnam with the wolf in question is the 
first of his heroic acts on record ; as it has excited great wonderment 
both in Europe and America ; and as it seems to have laid the founda- 
tion of his future fame and fortune, I will transcribe the story entire, 
as related by Colonel Humphreys : 

'This wolf at length became such an intolerable nuisance, that Mr. Putnam entered into a combi- 
nation with five ol' his neighbors to Inint alternately until they could destroy her. Two by rotation 
were to be constantly in pursuit. It was known tiiat having lost the toes from one loot by a steel 
trap, she made one track shorter than the other. By this vestige the pursuers recognized, in a light 
snow, the route of this pernicious animal. Having followed her to Connecticut river, and found she 
had turned back in a direct course toward Ponifret, they immediately returned, and by ten o'clock 
the ne.vt morning the blood-hounds had driven her into adeii,abouttliree miles distant from the house 
of Mr. Putnam. The people soon collected with dogs, guns, straw, fire, and sulphur, to attack the com- 
mon enemy. With this apparatus several unsuccessful eflbrts were made to force her from the den. 
The hounds came back badly wounded, and refused to return. The smoke of blazing straw had no 
eflect ; nor did the fumes of burnt brimstone, with which the cavern was filled, compel her to quit 
the retirement. Wearied with such fruitless attempts, (which had brought the time to ten o'clock at 
night,) Mr. Putnam tried once more to make his dog enter, but in vain ; he proposed to his negro man 
to go down into the cavern and shoot the wolf: the negro declined the hazardous service. Theu it 
was that the master, angry at the disappointment, and declaring that he was ashamed to have a coward 
111 his famdy, resolved himself to destroy the ferocious beast, lest she should escape through some un- 
known fissure of the rock. His neighbors strongly remonstrated agiinst the perilous enterprise: 
but he, knowing that wild animals were intimidated by fire, and having provided several strips of 
birch-bark, the onlj' combustible material which he could obtTiin, that would aflurd light in this deep 
and darksome cave, prepared lor his descent. Having accordingly divested himself of his coat and 
waistcoat, and having a long rope fastened round his legs, by which he might be pulled back, at a con- 
certed signal, he entered head foremost, with the blazing torch in his hand. 

'The aperture of the den, on the east side of a very high ledge of rocks, is about two feet square ; 
from thence it descends obliquely fifteen feet, then running horizontally about ten more, it ascends 
gradually si.xteen feet toward its termination. The sides of this subterraneous cavity are composed 
of smooth and solid rocks, which seem to have been divided from each other by some former earth- 
quake. The top and bottom are also of stone, and the entrance, in winter, being covered with ice, is 
e.vccedingly slippery. It is in no place high enough for a man to raise himself upright, nor in any 
part more than three feet in width. 

' Having groped his passage to the horizontal part of the den, the most terrifying darkness ap- 
peared in front of the dim circle of light afforded by his torch. It was silent as the house of death. 
None but monsters of the desert had ever before explored this solitary mansion of horror. He, 
cautiously proceeding onward, came to the ascent; which he slowly mounted on his hands and 
knees until he discovered the glaring eye-balls of the wolf, who was sitting at the extremity of the 
cavern. Started at the sight of fire, she gnashed her teeth and gave a sullen growl. As soon as ho 
had made the necessary discovery, he kicked the rope as a signal for pulling him out. The people, 
at the mouth of the den, who had listened with painful anxiety, hearing the growling of the wolf, 
and supposing their friend to be in the most imminent danger, drew him forth with such celerity 
that his shirt was stripped over his head and his skin severely lacerated. After he had adjusted his 
clothes, and loaded his gun with nnie buck-shot, holding a torch in one hand and the musket in the 
other, he descended the second time. When he drew nearer than before, the wolf, assuming a still 
more fierce and terrible appearance, howling, rolling her eyes, snapping her teeth, and dropping her 
head between her legs, was evidently in the attitucfc, and on the point of springing at him. At the 
critical instant he levelled and fired at her head. Stunned with the shock, and suflfocated with the 
smoke, he immediately found himself drawn out of the cave : but having refreshed himself, and 
permitted the smoke to ilissipate, he went down the third time. Once more he came within sight of 
the wolf, who appearing very passive, he applied the torch to her nose, and perceiving her dead, he 
took hold of her ears, and then kicking the rope (still tied round his legs) the people above, with no 
small exiiltatioi), dragged tliem both out together. 

'] have oa'ered tht-se facta iii greater detail, because tUey contain a display of character; uuii 



because tliey have been erroneously related in several European publications, ainl very much mufi^ 
lated in the history of Connecticut, a work as replete with falsehood as destitute of genius, lately 
printed in London.' — p. 20. 

The history here alluded to was written by the Rev. Mr. Peters, 
a tory refugee, who fled from Connecticut to England on the break- 
ing out of the war of independence. The work was quite in the 
Munchausen style, and intended to ridicule the people among whom 
he had officiated as a gospel minister. I have not the book before 
me, but I recollect one of his anecdotes stated that a company of 
bull-frogs removing in the night from a pond nearly dried up, in quest 
of one better supplied with water, and passing near a village, keep- 
ing up their usual ci'oaking, so frightened the inhabitants that many 
sought security by flight. They were taken, says the author, for a 
body of English soldiers. This queer writer found the foregoing 
wolf-story ready manufactured to his hand, and deeming it appropri- 
ate to his purpose, he incorpoi'ated it in his book, with perhaps a 
little ' extra trimmings.' 

The relation of such an extraordinary feat would naturally be 
seized upon by an author like Mr. Peters, with the view of turning 
it into ridicule. And in fact there are strong objections to its credi- 
bility. The difficulty of drawing a man out, feet-foremost, from such 
a winding cavern, seems insurmountable. The mention of blood- 
hounds, in a country where, it is believed, no such species of dog 
ever existed, is also liable to criticism. Beside, a gentleman who has 
visited the place assui'es me that the chasm in the rock is by no means 
extensive, and that the representation of it here given is entirely 
groundless. An affair like this, to establish its title to belief, required 
a frochs-verhal, signed by the witnesses present, under oath. 

After the enumeration of the foregoing grievances, the writer ob- 
serves : 

'Prosperity at length began to attend the agricultural affairs of Mr. Putnam. He was acknow- 
ledged to be a skilful and indefatigable ijjanager.' • • • ' But the time had now arrived which was to 
turn the instruments of husbandry into weapons of hostility, and to exchange the hunting of wolves 
that had ravaged the sheep-folds, for the pursuit after savages, who had desolated the frontiers. 
Putnam was about thirty-seven years old, when the war between England and France broke out in 
America. His reputation must have been favorably known to the government, since among the first 
troops that were levied by Connecticut, in IISS, he was appointed to the command of a company in 
Lyman's regiment of Provincials.' 

It was no doubt urged that a man who had exhihited such un- 
daunted courage, as above reported, in a rencontre with a wild beast, 
would be a proper person to contend with a savage foe. The author 
having got his hero into the army, where he had an opportunity to 
display his adventurous propensities, details his wonderful achieve- 
ments in a manner which, however pleasing in romance, is offensive 
to history, as requiring too severe a tax on human credulity : that 
is, although possible to have taken place, yet carrying such an air of 
romance as to lessen, if not totally to destroy, their credibility. 
Whether this arises from the poetic turn of the reporter, or from the 
exaggerated accounts given him by the actor himself in the surprising 
events narrated, I will not pretend to decide. I will transcribe a 
few of them. The first that occurs, was on an occasion of Captain 
Rogers and Captain Putnam being detached with a party of light 
troops for the purpose of obtaining accurate knowledge of the posi- 
tion and state of the works at Crown-Point. 



'It was impractical)lc to npproach with their party near enough for this purpose, without being 
discovered. Alone, the unclertaliing was sutficieutly hazardous, on acci unt of the swarms of hostile 
Indians who infested the woods. Our two partizans, liowever, left all their men at a convenient dis- 
tance, with strict ori'ers to continue concealed umil iheir return. Having thus cautiously taken 
their arrangements, they advanced with the profouiidest silence in the evening; and lay, during the 
night, contiguous to the fortress. Early in the morning they approached so close as to be able to 
give satisfactory information to the General who had sent them, on the points to w hich their attention 
had been directed : but Captain Rogers being at a little distance from Putnam, fortuitously met a 
stout Frenchman, who instantly seized his fuzee with one hand, and with the other attempted to stab 
him, while he culled to an adjacent guard for assistance. The guard answered. Putnam perceiving 
the imminent danger of his friend, and that no time was to be lost, or farther alarm given by firing, 
rau rapidly to them, while they were yet struggling, and with the butt-end of his piece laid the 
Frenchman dead at his feet. The partizans, to elude pursuit, precipitated their flight, joined the 
party, and returned without loss to the encampment. ' — p. 2C. 

' Few are so ignorant of war as not to know that military adventures in the night are always ex- 
tremely liable to accidents. Captain Putnam, having been commanded to reconnoitre the enemy's 
camp at the Ovens near Ticondtroga, took the brave Lieutenant Robert Durkee as his companion. 
In attempting to execute these orders, he narrowly missed being taken himself in the first instance, 
and kdling his friend in the second. It was customary for the British and Provincial troops to place 
their fires round their camp, which frequently exposed them to the enemy's scouts and patroles. A 
contrary practice, then unknown in the English army, prevailed among the French and Indians. 
The plan was much more rational ; they kept their fires in the centre, lodged their men circularly at a 
distance, and posted their ccntinels in the surrounding darkness. Our partizans approached the 
camp, and supposing the centries were within the circle of tires, crept upon their hands and knees 
with the greatest possible caution, until to their utter astonishment, they found themselves in the 
thickest of the enemy. The centinels, discovering them, fired and slightly wounded Durkee in the 
thigh. He and Putnam had no alternative. They fled. The latter, being foremost, and scarcely able 
to see his hand before him, soon plunged into a clay-pit. Durkee, almost at the identical moment, 
came tumbling after. Putnam, by no means pleased at finding a companion, and believing him to be 
one of the enemy, lifted his tomahawk to give the deadly blow, when Durkee, (who had followed so 
closely as to know him; inquired whether he had escaped unhurt. Captain Putnam instantly recog- 
nizing the voice, dropped his weapon ; and both, springing from the pit, made good their retreat to 
the neighboring ledges, amidst a shower of random shut. There they betook themselves to a large 
log, by the side of which they lodged the remainder of the night. Before they lay down, Captain 
Putnam said he had a little rum in his canteen, which could never be more acceptable or necessary; 
but on examining the canteen, which hung under his arm, he found the enemy had pierced it with 
their balls, and that there was not a drop of liquor left. The next day he found fourteen bullet-holes 
in his blanket ' — p. 28. 

It appears tliat the Captain and Lieutenant started together, and, 
in the manner of Jack and Grill, almost at the identical moment 
tumbled into a pit : and is it possible that the brave Captain Putnam, 
under these circumstances, was so frightened as to take his companion 
for an enemy ? His canteen was pierced with balls ; one would have 
sufficed to discharge its contents. He found his blanket had fourteeit 
huUct-holes. Here it is evidently intended to intimate that this had 
been caused by fourteen separate balls. But the blanket must of 
course have been rolled up and slung on his back ; one ball, therefore, 
might have committed all the damage sustained. This explanation, 
however, would lessen the imminent danger in which the Captain 
wished to represent himself upon this occasion. 

Captain Putnam was promoted to a IMajority by the legislature of 
Connecticut, in 1757. 

' As one day Major Putnam chanced to lie with a batteau and five men on the eastern shore of th« 
Hudson, near the K apids, contiguous to which Fort Miller stood, his men on the opposite bank had given 
him to understand that a large body of savages viexe-. in his rear, and would be upon him in a moment. 
To stay and be sacrificed, to attempt crossing and be shot, or to go down to the falls, with an almost 
absolute certainty of being drowned, were the sole alternatives that presented themselves to his choice. 
So iustantaneously was the latter adopted, that one man who had rambled a little from the party, was, 
of necessity, left, and fell a miserable victim to savage barbarity. The Indians arrived on the shore 
soon enough to fire many balls on the batteau before it could be got under way. No sooner had our 
batteau-men escaped, by favor of the rapidity of the current, beyond the reach of musket-shot, than 
death seemed only to have been avoided in one form to be encountered in another not less terrible. 
Prominent rocks, latent shelves, absorbing eddies, and abrupt descents, for a quarter of a mile, af- 
forded scarcely the smallest chance of escaping without a miracle. Putnam, trusting himself to a 
good providence, whose kindness he had often experienced, rather than to men, whose tender6.st 
mercies are cruelty, was now seen to place himself sedately at the helm, and afford an astonishing 
spectacle of serenity. His companions, with a mixture of terror, admiration and wonder, saw him 
incessantly changing the course, to avoid the jav/s of ruin, that seemed expanded to swallow the 
whirling bout. Twice he turned it fairly round to shun the rifts of rocks. Amidst these eddies, in 
which there was the greatest danger of its foundering, at one moment the sides were ex|X)sed to the 
fury of the waves ; then the stern, and next the bow glanced obliquely onward, with inconceivable 
velocity. With not less amazement the savages beheld him sometimes mounting the billows, then 



plunging abruptly down, at other times skilfully veering^ from the rocks, and shooting through tile 
only narrow passage ; until at last they viewed the boat safely gliding on the smooth surface of the 
stream below. At this sight, it is asserted that these rude sons of nature were atietied with the same 
kind of sui)erstitious veneration which the Europeans in the dark ages entertained for some of their 
most valorous champious. They deemed the man invulnerable, whom their balls on his pushing from 
shore could not touch ; and wliom they had seen steering in safety down tlie rapids that had never 
before been passed. They conceived it would be an aft'ront against the Great Spirit to attempt to 
kill this favored mortal with powder and ball, if they should ever see and know hnn again.' — p. 54. 

The author was a graduate of Yale College, and being a poet 
by profession, had doubtless thoroughly studied Homer and Virgil ; 
and he has evidently endeavored to imitate their graphic powers of 
delineation ; and it must be confessed has succeeded to admiration. 
But he should have recollected that in this case he was writing prose, 
and not poetry — history, not fiction ; and he should have curbed the 
ardor of his muse, and confined himself to sober matter-of-fact narra- 
tive. 

As to the ' superstitious veneration' in which this hero is here said 
to have been held by the aborigines of this country, ' do not believe a 
word of it.' Be assured they at this time were not so readily im- 
posed upon : they had seen, fought, and killed too many white men, 
to entertain such an exalted opinion of any of them. As they are 
good marksmen, the Major must have been far enough out of the 
reach of their musketry when they fired at him ; although from the 
perturbed state in which he was, he may have supposed himself pro- 
videntially preserved. All the time wanted to start a batteau is that 
which is required for the men to seize and ply the oars ; it is then 
immediately under way. This, it appears. Major Putnam ordered 
done, the moment he was informed there was a body of Indians in 
the vicinity, leaving, perhaps without necessity, one poor fellow to be 
sacrificed. 

The Indians at any rate soon found that Putnam, if invulnerable, 
was not invincible, for in a rencontre he had with them a little after 
this affair, he was obliged to sun-ender himself a prisoner : 

' Major Putnam had discharged his fuzee several times, but at length it missed fire, while the muz- 
zle was pressed against the breast of a large and wetl-pruportiuned savage. The warrior, availing 
himself of the indefensible attitude of his adversary, with a tremendous war-whoop, sprang forward, 
with his lifted hatchet, and compelled him to surrender; and having disarmed and bound him fast to 
a tree, returned to the battle.' A change of position of the combatants ' occasioned the tree to which 
Putnam was tied to be directly between the fire of the two parties. Human imagination can hardly 
figure to itself a more deplorable situation. The balls flew incessantly from each side, many struck 
the tree, while some passed through the sleeves and skirts of his coat. In this state of jeopardy, 
unable to move his body, to stir his limbs, or even to incline his head, he remained more than an hour. 
So equally balanced, aud so obstinate was the fight! At one moment, while the battle swerved in 
favor of the enemy, a young savage chose an odd way of discovering his humor. He found Putnam 
bound. He might have despatched him at a blow. But he loved better to e.xcite the terrors of tlie 
prisoner, by hurling a tomahawk at his head, or rather it should seem liis object was to see how near 
he could throw it without touching him; the weapon struck in the tree a number of times at a hair's 
breadth distance from the mark.' 

The Indians finally drew off", taking Major Putnam with them ; and 
when they had encamped for the night, ' it was determined to roast 
him alive !' An awful account of the preparations made for the pur- 
pose, is given by the biographer. He was however saved by the 
interference of a French officer, and taken to Montreal. Here he 
met with Colonel Peter Schuyler, also a prisoner, but on parole, who 
generously furnished him with clothing and money ; and not long after 
procured him to be exchanged with himself. 

To form the character of a complete hero, it is imperious that he 



perform some signal acts of gallantry toward the fair ; and an oppor- 
tunity now occurred for the Major to distinguish himself in this 
respect, which he did in true Quixotic style : 

' At the house of Colonel Schuyler, Major Putnam became acquainted with Mrs. Howe, a fair cap- 
tive, whose history would not be read without emotion, if it could be written in the same aflecting 
manner in which 1 have often heard it told. She was still young and handsome herself, though she 
had two daughters of marriageable age. Distress, which had taken somewhat from the original 
redundancy of her bloom, and added a softening paleness to her cheehs, rendered her appearance the 
more engaging. Her face, that seemed lo have been formed for the assemblage of dimples and smiles, 
was clouded with care. The natural sweetness was not, however, soured by despondency and petu- 
lance, but chastened by humility and resignation. This mild daughter of sorrow looked as if she 
had known the day of prosperity, when serenity and gladness of soul were tire inmates of her bosom. 
That day was past, and the once lively features jiow assumed a tender melancholy, which witnessed 
her irreparable loss. She needed not the customary weeds of mourning, or the fallacious pageantry 
of wo, to prove her widowed state. She was in that stage of affliction when the excess is so far 
abated as to permit the subject to be drawn into conversation, without opening the wound afresh. It 
is then rather a source of pleasure than pain to dwell upon the circumstances in narration. Every 
thing conspired to make her story interesting. Heriirst husband had been killed and scalped by the 
Indians some years before. By an unexpected assault, in 1756, upon Fort Dunimer, where she then 
happened to be present with Mr. Howe, her second husband, the savages carried the fort, murdered 
the greater part of the garrison, mangled in death her husband, and led her away with seven children 
into captivity.' 

But it appears, that ' a young French officer' had conceived a violent 
passion for her. ' He pursued her wheresoever she went, and although 
he could make no advances in her aftections, he seemed resolved by 
perseverance to carry his point. Mrs. Howe, terrified by his treat- 
ment, was obliged to keep constantly near Major Putnam, who informed 
the young officer that he would protect that lady at the risk of his 
life-' It is added in a note, that 'two or three incidents respecting 
Mrs. Howe, which were received by the author from General Putnam, 
and inserted in the former editions, ai'e omitted in this, as they appeared, 
on farther information, to be mistakes.' Who discovered these mis- 
takes 1 General Putnam or Colonel Humphreys ? The jjrobability 
is, that the incredibility of some of the reports had been suggested to 
the latter, which induced him to suppress them. But if they were 
corrected by the General himself, the circumstance showed his liability 
to error, which ought to have cautioned the biographer against con- 
tinuing many of the extravagant relations in the foregoing detail. 

' Colonel Putnam, (Putnam had been raised to this rank previous to the close of the war,) at the 
expiration of ten years from his first receiving a commission, after having seen as much service, en- 
dured as many hardships, encountered as many dangers, and acquired as many laurels as any officer 
of his rank, with great satisfaction laid aside his uniform, and returned to his plough.' 

Hostilities between Great Britain and her American colonies com- 
menced on the ISth of April, 1775, at Lexington, Massachusetts : 

'Putnam, who was ploughing when he heard the news, left his plough in the middle of the field, 
unyoked his team, and without waiting to change liis clothes, set oti' for the theatre of action. But 
finding the British retreated to Boston, and invested by a sufficient force to watch their movements, 
he came back to Connecticut, levied a regiment, under authority of the legislature, and speedily re- 
turned to Cambridge. He was now promoted to be a Major-Geuerai on the Provincial staff, by his 
colony ; and, in a little time, confirmed by Congress, in the same rank on the Continental establish- 
nieuL General Ward of Massachusetts, by common consent, commanded the whole ; and the cele- 
brated Doctor Warren was made a IMajor-General. 

' Not long after this period, tlie British commander-in-chief found the means to convey a proposal 
privately to General Putnam, that if he would relinquish the rebel party, he might rely upon being 
made a Major-Ceneral on the British establishment, and receiving a great pecuniary compensation 
for bis services. General Putnam spurned at the offer 4 v,hich\iov,e\er he thought prudent at thai 
time to conceal from public notice' 

Mr. Sweet, in his ' Sketch of Bunker-Hill Battle,' says : ' On the 
first news of the battle of Lexington, Putnam mounted his horse, rode 
in a single day one hundred miles, arrived at Cambridge, and attended 



a council of war on the 21st of April.' He must have been full of 
fight, or have supposed his presence at the scene of action very essen- 
tial to the country. Mr. Sweet, I find, obtained his information from 
the same source as Colonel Humphreys — at second hand from the 
family of General Putnam. Is it possible that Colonel Putnam would 
not pay the general officers and other gentlemen he was going to meet 
in council so much respect as to put on his mihtary, or at least his 
Sunday coat, which every Connecticut farmer is always supplied with 1 
Respect for himself, it would be thought, would have induced him to 
have done this. I am therefore inclined to believe this to be a ?)iis- 
iake. 1 suspect also that the General was hoaxed in regard to his 
being offered a bribe by General Gage. For, however well qualified 
he might formerly have been, as a partisan officer, his age at this time 
in some measure, but more particularly his want of education, and 
I'ough manners, rendered him unfit to fulfil the duties of Major- 
General. 

The ridiculous story, however, respecting the intercourse said to 
have taken place between Gage and Putnam, appears, according to 
the editor, to have been fabricated in England. He says : 

'An article, void of foundation, mentioning an interview between General Gag:e and General Put- 
nam, appeared in the English gazettes in these words : ' General Gage, viewing the American army 
with his telescope, saw General Putnam in it, wiiich surprised him ; and he contrived to get a message 
delivered to him, that he wanted to speak to him, Putnam without any hesitntion waited upon him. 
General Gage sliowed him his fortifications, and advised him to lay down his arms. General Putnam 
replied, he could force his fortifications in half an hour, and advised General Gage to go on board the 
ships with his troops,' 

Colonel Humphreys, in speaking of the battle of Bunkei'-Hill, says : 
'In this battle, the presence and example of General Putnam, who 
arrived with the reinforcement, were not less conspicuous than useful. 
He did every thing that an intrepid and experienced officer could ac- 
complish. The enemy pursued to Winter-Hill; Putnam made a 
stand, and drove them back under cover of their ships.' The editor 
says : ' Such was the statement made in some American newspapers 
of that day, but without any foundation in fact. There was no pur- 
suit of the British beyond Bunker-Hill.' Had the aid-de-camp of 
General Putnam need to apply to vague newspaper reports fi>r correct 
information of this battle "i How often did the General reiterate to 
him his achievements on the memorable day of that contest ! At any 
rate, this biography was published some years before the decease of 
the subject of it, who might have had any mistakes he thought proper 
corrected ; but it seems he chose to pocket the aft'ront of the mis- 
statements. The author has also committed another error in his account 
of this affair. He says, the troops sent on this service were 'under 
the oi'ders of General Warren.' Whereas Warren acted as a volun- 
teer, and refused the command of the redoubt offered to him by Colo- 
nel Prescott, but fought valiantly with his musket. 

But I shall show, in the sequel, that General Putnam is justly 
entitled to no laurels for his conduct on this occasion ; that he was an 
inactive spectator, in a secure position, during the whole time of the 
engagement; that he appeared only in the retreat, carrying off, it is 
said, some camp equipage upon his horse. Indeed the above state- 
ment in respect to him amounts to nothing, except that part of it which 



^ found to be erroneous. ' He did every thing,' etc., but no specification 
is given, because there was no tangible act to admit of it : 

' In the beginning of July, General Washington, who had been constituted by Congress Comman- 
der-in-Cliict'of the American forces, arrived at Cambridge to taUe the command. Havin" formed the 
army into three grand divisions, consisting of about twelve regiments each, he appointed Major- 
Geueral Ward to command the right wing, Major-Geiieral Lee the left wing, and Major-General Put- 
nam the reserve. General Putnam's alertness in accelerating the construction of the necessary de- 
fences was particularly noticed and highly approved by the Commander-in-Chief 

On the foregoing the editor remarks, in a note : ' It was not in 
Putnam's nature to be idle : inured to habits of industry himself, no 
man was better calculated to make others so ; and Wasuington, ob- 
serving the great progress that had been made in a short time, and 
with but few men, in raising a work of defence, said to him : ' You 
seem to have the faculty, General Putnam, of infusing your own in- 
dustrious spirit into all the workmen you employ.' ' 

General Washington saw at once what sort of employment General 
Putnam was calculated for ; and he was accordingly engaged in super- 
intending the erection of fortifications, or placed in reserve in the 
interior, for the most part, during the time he remained in service, 
which was till December, 1779 ; when ill health caused him to retire. 

' In order to cover the country adjoining to the Sound, and to support the garrison of West Point, 
in case of an attack, Major-General Putnam was stationed for the winter of 1778-9, at Ueading, in 
Connecticut. He had under his orders the brigade of New-Hampshire, the two brigades of Connec- 
ticut, the corps of infantry commanded by Hazeu, and that of cavalry by Sheldon. 

'The troops, who had been badly fed, badly clothed, and worse paid, by brooding over their 
grievances in the leisure and inactivity of winter quarters, began to think them intolerable. The 
Connecticut brigades formed the design of marching to Hartford, where the General Assembly was 
then in session, and of demanding redress at the point of the bayonet. VV ord having been brought 
to (ieneral Putnam, that the second brigade was under arms for this purpose, he mounted his horse, 
gallopped to the cantonment, and thus addressed them : ' My brave lads, whithe> are you goin" ? Uo 
30U intend to desert your officers, and to invite the enemy to follow you into tlie country ? Whose 
cause have you been fighting and suffering so long in 7 Is it not your own? Have you no property, 
no parents, wives or children? You have behaved like men so far; all the world is full of yoiir 
praises ; and posterity will stand astonished at your deeds ; but not if you spoil all at last. Do n't 
you consider how much the country is distressed by the war, and that your officers have not been any 
better paid tlian yourselves 1 But we all e.xpect better times, and that the country will do us ample 
justice. Let us all stand by one another, then, and fight it out like brave soldiers. Think what a 
shame it would be for Connecticut men to run away from their officers.' After the several regiments 
had received the General as he rode along the line with drums heating, and presented arms, the ser- 
geants who had then the command, brought the men to an order, in which positron they continued 
while he was speaking. When he had done, he directed the acting Major of Brigade to give the 
word for them to shoulder, march to their regimental parades, and lodge arms; all which they ex- 
ecuted with promptitude and apparent good humor. One soldier only, w ho had been the most active, 
was confined in the quarter-guard ; from v. hence, at night, he attempted to make his escape. But 
the sentinel, who had alfO been in the mutiny, shot him dead on the spot, and thus the afl'air subsided. 

' About the middle of winter, v. bile General Putnam was on a visit to his out-iiost at Horse-Neck, 
he found Governor Tryon advancing upon that town with a corps of fifteen hundred men. To oppose 
tlie>e General Putnam had only a picquct of one hundred and fifty men, and two iron field-pieces, 
without horses or drag-ropes. Ho, however, planted his cannon on the high ground, by the meeting- 
house, and retarded their approach by firing several times, until, perceiving tlie horse (supported by 
the infantry) about to charge, he ordered the picquct to provide for their safety, by retiring to a 
swamp inaccessible to horse, and secured his own, by plunging down the steep precipice at the church 
upon a full trot. This precipice is so steep, where he descended, as to have artificial stairs, composed 
of nearly one hundred stone steps, for the accommodation of foot p.is.sengers. There the dragoons, 
who were but a sword's length from him, stopped short; for the declivity was so abrupt, tliat they 
ventured not to follow ; and, before they could gain the valley, by going round the brow of the hill in 
the ordinary road, he was far enough beyond their reach.' 

I am induced to believe that General Putnam here, as in the case 
of Lieutenant Durkee's following him into the clay-pit, labored under 
a false apprehension. I have descended this famous hill, at the place 
where Putnam is said to have bolted from the main road, leading my 
horse. The dragoons surely would not hesitate to have done the 
same, to secure the old General ; who, I am confident, could not have 
gained much, if any, by being on horseback. The road is of course 



10 

made winding, for the purpose of rendering the ascent more gi'adual, 
and consequently an object a short distance ahead would be out of 
sight of persons in the rear ; which was, no doubt, the case with 
Putnam when he made his escape, as above related. 

Colonel Humphreys' life of Putnam was first published in 178S. 
The General had been attacked with paralysis, in December, 1779, 
which deprived him of the use of his limbs on the right side. ' In 
that situation,' says his biographer, ' he has constantly remained, fa- 
vored with such a portion of bodily activity as enables him to walk 
and ride moderately ; and retaining unimpaired his relish for enjoy- 
ment, his love of pleasantry, his strength of memory, and all thefacid- 
ties of his mind. As a proof that his powers of memory are not 
weakened, it ought to be observed, that he has lately repeated from 
recollection all the adventures of his life, which are here recorded, 
and which had formerly been communicated to the compiler in de- 
tached conversations.' In the edition of the work which I use, pub- 
lished in 1818, it is added, that General Putnam was attacked with an 
inflammatory disease on the 17th of May, 1790, and died on the 19th 
of the same month. 

General Putnam, it appears, was of a convivial disposition ; and 
wishing to amuse his neighbors on winter evenings, was doubtless in 
the habit of detailing his adventures, and occasionally ornamenting 
them with a spice of the wonderful, to render them more acceptable 
and entertaining to his company ; till by frequent repetition these 
addenda escaped the notice even of the narrator himself There is 
no other way of accounting for his not contradicting many of the 
absurdities and errors contained in this memoir, which he must 
frequently have read. 

It is unfortunate for the truth of history, that this publication ever 
appeared, as it has had great influence with succeeding historians, 
sanctioned as it was by the Connecticut Society of Cincinnati, com- 

Eosed of revolutionary general and field officers. It is probable, 
owever, that none of the members of this society read the manu- 
scripts ; and if they had, although they had heard of the wolf affair, 
and of the miraculous escape of the General, at Horseneck Hill, they 
must have been utterly ignorant of his exploits with the Indians in 
the French war, as these were known to no living soul but himself 

If the characters of our revolutionary officers of the highest grade 
can be sustained only by incredible Munchausen stories, the sooner 
they fall into oblivion the better for the honor of the country. 

I will take a brief notice of a ' Sketch of the Battle of Bunker 
Hill, by S. Sweet ;' published in 1818, and here appended to the work 
of Colonel Humphreys. The author says : 

' With the advice of the council of war, General Ward issued orders to Colonel William Prescott, 
to the commander of Colonel Frye's regiment, and Colonel Bridge, to be prepared for an expedition, 
with all their men fit for service, and one day's provisions. Tlie same order issued for one hundred 
and twenty of General Putnam's regiment, and one company of artillery with two field pieces. 

' V\ itii these troops Cololiel Prescott was ordered to proceed to Charlestown, in the tvening, take 
possession of Bunlcer Hill, and erect the requisite fortifications to defend it.' — p. 208. 

'General Putnam iiaving tlie general superintendence of the expedition, and the cliief, Colonel 
Gridley, accompanied the troops.' — p. 210. 

' At daybreak, General Putnam ordered Lieutenant Clark to send and request of General Ward a 
horse for him to ride to Bunker Hill. The Lieutenant went himself, but the General's impatience 
could not await au auswer. On his return he found him mounted and departing.' — p. 1 17. 



n ^ 



11 

These two contradictory accounts are doubtless derived from the 
same source ; the narrator through lack of memory forgettino-, when 
relating one story, that he had told a different one respecting the same 
transactions upon another occasion. That Mr. Sweet communicated 
with the family of General Putnam, and received his information from 
it, he expressly states. 

Our author says : ' The drums beat to arms. Putnam left his works, 

commenced on Bunker Hill, and led his troops into action.' p. 221. 

It will hereafter appear that this statement is a imstal<e ; that he com- 
menced no works on Bunker Hill ; that he calculated on the defeat 
of the Americans, and made no effort to prevent it. His whole care 
seems to have been bestowed on saving the entrenchino- tools. His 
opinion of the issue of the combat, at the time, is thus related by Mr. 
Sweet: 'As General Warren passed on to the scene of action, he 
met with General Putnam, who observed, that 'From long experience, 
he perfectly comprehended the character of the British army ; they 
would ultimately succeed and drive us from the works, but from the 
mode of attack they had chosen, it was in our power to do them infi- 
nite mischief, though we must be prepared for a brave and orderly 
retreat, when we could maintain our ground no lono-er.' — p. 220. 

This must have been a private conversation, if it ever occurred, 
between these two generals ; for certainly General Putnam would not 
have been so imprudent as to advance such an opinion publicly. The 
relation of it, therefore, must be derived from him ; but whether the 
opinion were expressed before or after the fact, may be doubtful. At 
any rate, his want of faith in the success of the American arms upon 
this occasion is apparent; and this seems to have paralyzed his exer- 
tions toward its accomplishment. He remained on horseback at a 
distance from the battle-ground, prepared for a speedy retreat when- 
ever his own safety might require it. Notwithstanding these fore- 
bodings of Putnam, Mr. Sweet says, ' The Americans were impatient 
to be led against the enemy. General Putnam, Colonel Prescott, and 
other veterans, demanded that advantage should be taken of this dis- 
position of the men, and their wishes gratified.' Vv^hat glarino- incon- 
sistency ! 'Do not believe a word of it.' This is an instance of poetical 
history ; trimmings are required to make a complete hero. Putnam 
is here made to advise an action which he was convinced would end 
in defeat ! 

A pamphlet of thirty-six pages, published at Portland in 1835, has 
fallen into my hands, which puts an end to all farther doubt respecting 
the conduct of General Putnam on the occasion in question. It is 
entitled, ' History of the Battle of Breed's Hill : by Major-Generals 
William Hkath, Henry Lee, James Wilkinson, and IIenry Dear- 
born. Compiled by Charles Coffin.' 

Mr. Coffin has added the testimony of other very respectable wit- 
nesses, who were engaged in the action, and is deserving of great 
praise for the trouble he has taken in placing the history of the im- 
portant event treated of, on its true basis, and beyond the reach of cavil. 
He has prefaced the pamphlet with the following notice : 

' Having for years been satisfied that the accounts of Breed's Hill Battle, as given by Gordon War- 
ren, Ramsey, and Marshall, are defective and imperfect, I have been induced to publish the trausac- 
Uon of that memorable event, as given by four American Major-Geuerals, wlio were either in ihf 



13 

action, or had the best possible opportunities of hA\s fully acquainted with the details of it, and 
who from their profession were better qualitied to give a full and fair narrative, than any others who 
have undertaken it ; to which are added, tlie deposition of a number of highly respectable gentlemen 
who were eye witnesses and partakers of the glory of that proud day. The following sheets, it 
is believed, will give a more full and accurate view of the troops engaged, by whom commanded, and 
all the transactions of the day, than any narrative extant. My objects are truth and justice to the 
living and the dead.' 

I shall select a few passages only from this pamphlet, respecting 
the immediate matter at issue, without regard to the details connected 
therewith, which are not essential to my purpose. 

Battle of Breed's Hill. — The following is from the ' Memoirs 
of Major-General William Heath, published in 179S.' 

'Perhaps there never was a better fought battle than this, all things considered ; and too much 
praise can never be bestowed on the conduct of Colonel W illiam Prescott, who, notwithstanding any 
thing that may have been said, was the proper commanding officer at the redoubt, and nobly acted 
his part as such, during the whole action. 

' Just before the action began. General Putnam came to the redoubt, and told Colonel Prescott that the 
entrenching tools mu^t be sent oft", or they would be lost; the Colonel replied, that if he sent any of 
the men away with the tools, not one of them would return; to this the General answered, ' They shall 
every man return.' A large party was then sent off with the tools, and not one of them returned: in 
this instance the Colonel was the best judge of human nature. In the time of action. Colonel Pres- 
cott observed that the brave General V\ arren was near the works ; he immediately stepped up to 
him, and asked him if he had any orders to give him. The General replied that he had none, that 
he e.\.ercised no comiuand there : ' The command,' said the General, ' is yours.' 

Our next extract is from Major-General Henry Lee's ' Memoirs of 
the War in the Southern Department,' published in 1812. General 
Lee merely glances at the battle of Bunker Hill. He says : 

' Warren, who fell nobly supporting the action, was the favorite of the day, and has engrossed 
the fame due to Prescott. No man reveres the character of Warren more than the writer ; and he 
considers himself not only, by his obedience to truth, doing justice to Colonel Prescott, but per- 
forming an acceptable service to the memory of the illustrious Warren, who being a really great 
man, would disdain to wear laurels not his own. • • • The military annals of the world rarely fur- 
nish an achievement which equals the firmness and courage displayed on that proud day by the 
gallant band of Americans ; and it certainly stands first in the 'irilliant events of our war. When 
future generations shall inquire where arj the men who gained the highest prize of glory in the 
arduous contest which ushered in our nation's birth, upon Prescott and his companions in arms will 
the eye of history beam.' 

From 'A Sketch of the Battle of Breed's Hill, by Major-General 
James Wilkinson,' published in 1S16, we take the following : 

'If General Putnam had moved up with Colonel Gerrish and the men who remained stationary 
within si.v hundred yards of ihe combat, which lasted an hour and a half, the triumph of the pro- 
vincials would have been decisive, and those of the British corps who were not killed must have sur- 
rendered, which would probably have terminated the contest, and prevented the disseverment of the 
British empire ; but I understand from high authority, that it was in vain Colonel Prescott sent 
messenger after messenger to entreat General Putnam to come to his succor ; he rode about Bunker's 
Hill, while ilie battle raged under his eye, with a number of entrenching tools slung across his horse, 
but did not advance a step, and was passed, with Colonel Gerrish at his side, by Stark and Dearborn, 
as they retreated, near t!ie spot where they saw him when they advanced ; and for this conduct Colonel 
Prescott never ceased to condemn the General.' . . . ' All the reinforcements which arrived at 
Bunker Hill, after Colonel Stark had passed, halted and kept company with General Putnam and 
Colonel Gerrish.' 

Account of the Battle, by Major-General Henry Dearborn, pub- 
lished in ISIS : 

' When the troops arrived at the summit of Runker's Hill, we found General Putnam with nearly 
as many men as had been engaged in the battle; notwithstanding which, no measure had been taken 
for reinforcing us, nor was there a shot tired over our retreat, or any movement made to check the 
advance of the enemy to this height ; but on the contrary. General Putnam rode off with a number of 
spades and pick-axes m his haiids, Oind the troops that had remained with him inactive during the 
whole of the action, although within a few hundred yards of the battle-ground, and no obstacle to 
impede their movement but musket balls.' 

'The total loss of the British was about twelve hundred, upward of five hundred killed and be- 
tween si.t and seven hundred wounded. The Welsh fusileers suffered most severely ; they came into 
action five hundred strong, and all were killed or wounded but eighty-three. 



13 

' I will mention an extraortliuary circumstance to show how far the temporary reputation of a man 
may aftect the minds of all classes of society. 

' General Putnam had entered our army at the commencement of tho revolutionary war, with such a 
universal popularity as can scarcely now be conceived,even by those who theu felt the whole force of 
it, and no one can at this time ofler any satisfactory reasons why he was held in such high estimation. 

' In the battle of Bunker s Hill he tools post on the declivity toward Charlestown neck ; where I 
saw him on horseback as we passed on to Breed's Hill, with Colonel Gerrish by his side. I heard the 
gallant Colnnel Frescott (who commanded in the redoubt) observe after the war, at the table of his 
Excellency, James Eoudoin, then Governor of this Commonwealth, ' that he sent three messeno-ers 
during the battle to General Putnam, requesting him to come forward and take the command, there 
being no general officer present, and the relative rank of the Colonel not having been settled • but 
that lie received no answer, and his whole conduct was such, both during the action and the retreat 
that he ought to have been shot.' He remained at or near the top of Bunker Hill until the retreat 
with Colonel Gerrish by his siue ; I saw them together when we retreated. He not only continued at 
that distance himself during the whole of the action, but had a force with him nearly as lar<»e as that 
engaged. No reinforcement of men or ammunition was sent to our assistance; and, instead of at- 
tempting to cover the retreat of those who had expended their last shot in the face of the enemy he 
retreated in company with Colonel Gerrish, and his whole force, without discharging a single musket • 
but what is still more astonishing, Colonel Gerrish was arrested for cowardice, tried, cashiered and 
universally execrated ; while not a word was said against the conduct of General Putnam, whose ex- 
traordinary popularity alone saved him, not only from trial, but even from censure. Colonel Gerrish 
commanded a regiment, and should have been at its head. His regiment was not in action although 
ordered ; but as he was in the suite of the Gener.il, and appeared to be in the situation of Adjutant 
General, why was he not directed by Putnam to join it, or the regiment sent into action under the 
senior officer present with it ! 

' When General Putnam's ephemeral and unaccountable popularity subsided or faded away and 
the minds of the people were released from the shackles of a delusive trance, the circumstances rela- 
ting to Bunker-HiU were viewed and talked of in a very difi'erent light, and the selection of the un- 
fortunate Colonel Gerrish as a scape-goat considered as a mysterious and inexplicable event. 

' I have no private feeling: to gratify by making this statement in relation to General Putnam as I 
never had any intercourse with him, and was only in the army where he w as present, for a few months • 
but at this late period, I conceive it a duty to give a fair and impartial account of one of the most im-' 
portant battles during the war of independence, and all the circumstances connected with it, so far as 
I had the means of being correctly informed. It is a duty 1 owe to posterity, and the character of 
those brave officers who bore a share in the hardships of the revolution. ' 

I will take a short notice of the other interesting and satisfactory 
documents adduced by Mr. Coffin ; commencing with the ' Statement 
of the Honorable Abel Parkek, Judge of Probate' : 

' As I was in the battle on Breed's Hill, on the 17tb June, 1775, and there received one ball through 
my leg, another having passed through my clothes, all accounts of that battle are to me extremely 
interesting. But I had not seen an account which 1 considered in any degree correct, until the one 
published by General Dearborn. But notwiihstanding the correctness of his description of the bat- 
tle, some persons seem to be much exasperated by it, in particular as to what he asserts in rcard to 
General Putnam. As long as they confined themselves to mere declamation, without brin^iii" for- 
ward any evidence to disprove General Dearborn's statement, I deemed it unnecessary for me to 
appear in vindication of it. But, on perusing a letter from Colonel Trumbull to Colonel Putnam 
(son of the general,) wherein mention is made of a conversation with Col. Small, in London, I con- 
cluded that to remain longer silent, would be absolutely criminal. I shall therefore, in as concise a 
manner as pos.sible, state what I know relating to that memorable battle.' 

It is not necessary to follow the Judge in the whole of his detail. 
He was attached to Captain John Nutting's company, in Prescott's 
regiment : 

' The company,' he says, ' left the town, and marched to join the regiment on the hill. When we 
arrived there, the fort was in considerable forwardness, and the troops commenced throwing up the 
breast-work mentioned by General Dearborn. We had not been long in that work, before the can- 
non-shot from a hill in Boston, and the vessels lying in the river, were poured in upon us in "real 
profusion. Some time before this there were brought to the fort several brass field-pieces, one of 
which was actually fired toward Boston, but the ball did not reach the town. In the time of this 
heavy lire, I, for the first time that day, saw General Putnam, standing with others, under cover of 
the north wall of the fort, where I believe he remained until the British troops made their appear- 
ance in their boats. At this time the artillery was withdrawn from the fort, by whose orders I know 
not, and General Putnam, at or near the same time, left the fort. 

' When the British first made their attack with small arms, I was at the breast-work, where I re- 
mained until I received my wound from the party who tianked it; I then went to the fort, wheVe I 
remained until the order to retreat was given by Colonel Prescott. After my arrival at the fort I 
had a perfect opportunity of viewing the operations of the day, and noticed Colonel P. as the only per- 
son who took upou him any command. He frequently ordered the men from one side to the other 
in order to defend that part which was pressed hardest by the enemy ; and I was within a few yards 
of him, when the order to retreat was given ; and I affirm, that at that time General Putnam was not 
in the fort, neither had he been there at any time after my entering the same ; and I have no hesita- 
tion in declaring, that the story told by Colonel Small to Colonel Trumbull, concerning General Put- 
nam's saving him from the fire of our men at that time, is altogether unfounded-' 



14 

Colonel Trumbull, it appears, was completely hoaxed by this 
Colonel Small, of the British army, who induced him to alter the first 
draught of his picture of the battle, in order to give ' his friend,' as he 
called him. General Putnam, and himself conspicuous positions in 
the action ; thereby rendering his picture, as an historical portrait, 
worthless, in fact offensive to the view, in exhibiting a representa- 
tion contrary to vi^hat actually took place. The testimony of several 
others who were present and took part in the contest, is given in the 
pamphlet, fully coulirraing the statement of Judge Parker in regard 
to Colonel Small. 

Rev. Dr. William Bentley, in his Statement published in Salem 
in 1818, says : 

' I was with General Stark, on the 31st of May, 1810. Among the maps, prints, and papers I car- 
ried him, were some portraits, and among them was one of General Putnam. I recollect that, upon 
the sight of the head of General Putnam, he said, ' My chaplain,' as he called me, 'you know my 
opinion of that man. Had lie done his duty, he would have decided the fate of his country in the 
first action.' He ihen proceeded to describe to me the scene of action, and told me where he saw 
General Putnam, and what was done on the occasion. His remarks were as severe as his genius and 
the sentiments of ardent patriotism could make them. As General Stark always used the same lan- 
guage on the subject, it will be recollected by many of his friends.' 

The following are certificates of the Rev. Daniel Chaplin, D. D., 
of Groton, and the Rev. John Bullard, of Pepperell : ' This may 
certify to the public, that we whose names are here given, were in 
habits of intimacy with Colonel W. Prescott, of Pepperell, a man of 
the strictest integrity, during most of the period after he left the revo- 
lutionary army until his death.' Here they state his remarks respect- 
ing General Warren, of his refusing to take any command, etc., and add: 

'Colonel Prescott further informed us repeatedly, that when a retreat was ordered and com- 
menced,as he was descending the hill, he met with General Putnam, and said to him, ' Why did you iipt 
support me, General, witli your men, as I had reason to expeci, according to agreement?' Putnam 
answered, ' I could not drive the dogs up.' Prescott pointedly said to him, ' If you could not drive 
them up, you might have Ud them up.' We have good reason to believe further, from declarations 
of some of our parishioners, men of respectability, whose veracity cannot be doubted, who belonged 
to Colonel Prcscott's regiment, and were present through tlie whole service, that General Putnam 
was not on Breed's Hill the nigjit preceding, or on that day, except that just before the attack was 
made, he might have gone to the fort and ordered the tools to be carried oti', that they might not fall 
into the hands of the enemy in the event of his carrying the works, and holding the ground, and that 
he and his men, with Colonel Gerrish, remained on the side of Bunker Hill toward the neck during 
the whole action.' 

Thus it appears that General Putnam, at the battle of Bunker Hill, 
reo'ardless of the lives of the brave men who fell on that glorious day, 
vindicating the cause of their country, was solely occupied in remov- 
ing the camp equipage and brass field-pieces ; taking away the 
very means that might have produced a different result to the contest. 

How has it happened that the conduct of this man upon this occa- 
sion has not met with the universal reprobation of the country ] His 
unbounded popularity on his entering the revolutionary army, is the 
reply. ' And,' says General Dearborn, ' no one can at this time offer 
any satisfactory reasons why he was held in such high estimation.' 

Mankind are fond of the marvellous, and listen with intense avidity 
to relations of sm-prising acts of heroism and hair-breadth escapes. 
The country had been filled with the wonderful achievements of this 
hero in the French war, as detailed by himself, and afterward recorded 
by Colonel Humphreys ; and his memorable victory over the she 
wolf, like the feats of the fabled Perseus, paved the way for the 
favorable reception of other acts equally valorous. Here is the solu- 




15 

tion of the mystery. General Putnam was looked upon as tlie Her- 
cules of America, of unequalled prowess and skill in war. But the 
greatest boasters are not always the bravest in action ; and this prin- 
ciple was tested at the battle of Bunker Hill. 

In regard to the conduct of Colonel Gerrish, there is the greatest 
reason to believe that he was induced by Putnam to remain with his 
regiment, wit'i him, as a corps de reserve ; which, however, was not 
intended by the latter to be brought into action. And being under 
the protection, and perhaps as he^thought under the command, of a 
Major-General, he presumed himself excusable for disobedience of 
the order of the commander-in-chief. ' The Colonel,' says General 
^-M_ / Wilkins,^' was cashiered, but the General, being distinguished for his 
popularity, served as third in command at the termination of the 
American revolution.' General Dearborn observes, that after this 
battle General Putnam was viewed in a vei'y different light from 
what he had been before, and that ' the selection of the unfortunate 
Colonel Genish as a scape-goat was considered as a mysterious and 
inexplicable event.' 

Now it appears to me that this difficulty admits of an easy explana- 
tion. General Putnam was not ordered to Bunker Hill ; if he had 
been, he must have had the command as the superior officer. He 
was therefore not amenable for a dereliction of duty, none having 
been imposed upon him. He appears to have gone near the scene 
of action, with what view does not expressly appear, except that of 
securing the entrenching tools ; although his biographers endeavor to 
place upon his brows the laurels nobly won by others. Mr. Sweet 
contradicts his own previous statement, when he says, ' General Put- 
nam, having the general superintendence of the expedition, accom- 
panied the troops.' He had before declared that Putnam sent a 
request to General Ward for a horse to ride to Bunker Hill, and of 
course without orders from that officer. There is no record in his- 
tory, it is presumed, where a superior officer is ordered on an expe- 
dition as a mere superintendent, and the command at the same time 
given to an officer of inferior grade. What duty, in such case, de- 
volves upon a superintendent 1 To take care of the camp equipage 1 
Nonsense ! The commander is the superintendent. The creation of 
this awkward office is entirely gratuitous; got up to account for 
General Putnam's being at or near the battle-ground, and as an 
apology for his looking on and taking no part in the action. 

It is time the public should be disabused in respect to the character 
and services of General Putnam. Nearly all the accounts of the 
American revolutionary war, all encyclopedias and biographical works 
published in the United States, in treating of him, falsify history in the 
most shameful manner. As a sample, take the following from a late 
biography by the Rev. J. L. Blake, D. D. He says : 

' Israel Putnam, Major-General in the American revolutionary war, 
was a native of Massachusetts. He settled in Connecticut, and early 
discovered that energy and decision of character which distinguished 
him through life ; and the remarkable instance he gave of it in the 
destruction of a wolf will always go with his name. He was engaged 
in the French war, and a detail of his adventures and distresses 
border on romance. He was one of the first to take up arms at the 



16 

occurrence at Lexington, and performed a distinguished part at Bun- 
ker Hill. He bad an important command during the whole war.' 

Farther comment is unnecessary. The reader, from the pi'oofs 
we have cited, must be convinced that the entire life of General Put- 
nam, as given by his biographers, not only ' borders on,' but actually 
is, ' romance,^ 

JOHN FELLOWS, 



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. TRRflRY OF CONGRESS 

Mint 

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